Kestra Investment Management LLC Invests $600,000 in Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE)

Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chemed Co. (NYSE:CHE) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $600,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in shares of Chemed by 300.3% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 116,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,249,000 after buying an additional 87,449 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Chemed in the third quarter valued at approximately $437,150,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its holdings in Chemed by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 317,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $172,510,000 after acquiring an additional 51,974 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Chemed by 23.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 238,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,401,000 after acquiring an additional 45,917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Chemed by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 223,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,068,000 after purchasing an additional 40,358 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.85% of the company’s stock.

Chemed Stock Performance

CHE opened at $572.39 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $578.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $565.05. The firm has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a PE ratio of 28.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.46. Chemed Co. has a twelve month low of $523.33 and a twelve month high of $654.62.

Chemed (NYSE:CHE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.76 by ($0.12). Chemed had a return on equity of 27.86% and a net margin of 12.69%. The business had revenue of $606.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Chemed Co. will post 21.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chemed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. Chemed’s payout ratio is 10.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Kevin J. Mcnamara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.77, for a total transaction of $1,145,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,270,755.95. This represents a 1.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Spencer S. Lee sold 732 shares of Chemed stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $575.62, for a total value of $421,353.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,526,362.94. This represents a 3.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 6,845 shares of company stock valued at $3,978,798. 3.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on CHE. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Chemed from $697.00 to $633.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Chemed from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday.

Chemed Profile

Chemed Corporation provides hospice and palliative care services to patients through a network of physicians, registered nurses, home health aides, social workers, clergy, and volunteers primarily in the United States. The company operates in VITAS and Roto-Rooter segments. It offers plumbing, drain cleaning, excavation, water restoration, and other related services to residential and commercial customers through company-owned branches, independent contractors, and franchisees.